Aris completely broke.

He struggled wildly, his body writhing against Paros’s restraint as he hurled curses at Yuel’s retreating figure.

"Yuel, I curse you—may you die a miserable death!"

Yuel did not even slow his steps.

The insults barely registered. If anything, they were disappointing.

Aris’s ability to curse others was pitiful, not even a fraction as sharp as Xarion’s.

As Yuel reached the cave entrance, Aris’s voice rose again, turning shrill and desperate as he screamed for Rory.

"Female Master! I’m the one who truly loves you! That idiot doesn’t deserve you!"

Outside, Rory heard nothing. The cave had been completely sealed.

The moment she saw Yuel emerge, she stepped forward immediately.

"Well? Did you find out anything?"

Yuel nodded with a faint smile. "I did. Aren is with the succubus clan."

Rory frowned. "The succubus clan? Did Aris say how Aren got back there? Did he go on his own, or was he taken?"

Yuel shook his head slightly. "He didn’t give specifics. But one thing is certain—Aren’s condition isn’t good. We need to find him as soon as possible."

The moment she heard that, Rory’s expression tightened.

"Then we leave for the succubus clan now."

Behind them, Paros emerged from the cave, dragging Aris out like a lifeless carcass, bound tightly.

Wen took one look and immediately stepped forward, pulling out a containment capsule designed for living beings and handing it to Paros.

"This is too cumbersome," he said. "Use this instead."

"Put him in here first." 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Paros nodded. Without hesitation, he tossed the unconscious Aris into the capsule.

This kind of containment capsule could hold beastkin, but it caused significant harm over time. It was typically reserved for prisoners.

For someone like Aris, it was more than fitting.

With that problem dealt with, the group wasted no time and set off immediately.

Luck was on their side. On the way back, the white mist in the valley had thinned, and the signal on their light-brains remained stable.

They encountered no major danger. A few high-rank aberrant beasts crossed their path, but Xarion and Paros eliminated them effortlessly.

The group moved swiftly, their figures flickering like shadows across the jagged terrain.

Before long, Rory spotted several figures racing toward them in the distance.

At the front were Vincent and Jasper.

"Vincent! Jasper! We’re here!" Rory raised her hand, calling out.

They immediately led their team over. The moment they saw Rory unharmed, both of them visibly relaxed.

"You’re back so soon?" Vincent asked. "Where’s Aren?"

He scanned the group but saw no sign of the injured man, confusion creeping into his voice.

Rory quickly explained everything that had happened.

When they heard that the person in the cave had been Aris, not Aren, Vincent’s brows furrowed slightly.

"So Aris really can’t be killed?"

Yuel nodded. "Yes. That’s why I had Paros bind him. We’ll keep him locked away from now on. Better that than letting him resurface and target Rory again."

Vincent inclined his head in agreement. He fully supported the decision.

"Rory," he said, turning to her, "on my way here, I received news."

"There’s going to be a grand banquet in the succubus clan today. Officially, it’s to celebrate their young master’s bonding ceremony."

The words stunned everyone present.

Wen reacted first. "The succubus clan’s young master has always been Aren, but the one who actually handled affairs was Aris. Now that Aris is in our hands, this ceremony definitely isn’t for him."

If not for Aris, then it could only be for Aren.

Jasper added, recalling what he had heard, "I’ve also received word. The partner chosen for the ceremony... is a human female named Bree."

"Bree?"

Rory frowned. "How could it be her? Does the succubus clan know she’s human?"

Otherwise, why would they arrange a bonding ceremony between a Rank Eleven Aren and a human female?

Yuel fell silent for a brief moment, then gave a small nod.

"Most likely," Yuel said quietly.

"From Aris’s tone just now, Aren’s condition doesn’t seem good. I think we should go and see for ourselves."

Aren had risked his life climbing Beast God Mountain to retrieve a divine fruit for Rory.

There was no way he would willingly bond with another female.

If he had not refused the ceremony, then perhaps... he no longer had the ability to refuse.

Why would that be?

Most likely, he truly had gone to Beast God Mountain—and returned gravely injured.

Rory nodded, her expression resolute. "I agree. Now that we have news of Aren, we have to go to the succubus clan, no matter what."

With their course decided, no one hesitated.

They swiftly left the Rift Range.

Once outside, they boarded their airship and set a direct course for the succubus territory.

***

The succubus clan.

Inside a cold, dim chamber, silence pressed heavily against the walls.

Aren lay bound to a stone bed, his limbs restrained by dark chains.

His face was pale, his clothes torn and soaked through with blood. Jagged wounds marred his body, several across his chest deep enough to expose bone.

The chains binding him were black as night, etched with intricate runes that glowed faintly gold.

Those runes pulsed steadily, draining his abilities without pause.

A harsh creak echoed through the chamber.

The heavy stone door slowly opened, its grating sound cutting through the stillness.

A beam of dim yellow light spilled inside, pushing back the shadows just enough.

A woman stepped in.

She wore an elegant dark gown, her beauty cold and untouchable, her expression veiled in frost.

It was Aren’s mother.

Her gaze fell upon her son’s battered form, and for a fleeting moment, something unreadable flickered in her eyes.

"Aren... are you still unwilling to yield?"

Her voice was calm, but it carried through the chamber like ice.

"If you keep resisting, your abilities will soon be completely drained."

Aren lay motionless, eyes still closed.

She pressed her lips together slightly.

"Aren, listen to your mother. Hand over the divine fruit. Leave that female named Rory. Follow the clan’s arrangement. Become the mate of the human female, Bree... and I will have you released immediately."

Slowly, Aren opened his eyes.

He looked at her.

Mockery burned within them.

"Mother?"

His cracked lips curled into a faint, bitter smile. His voice was hoarse, laced with biting cold.

He let out a low, derisive laugh as he stared at the woman before him.

"Are you really my mother?"

Aren looked at Melanie, his eyes filled with quiet mockery and self-ridicule.

"You bribed the people around me. You found out I had obtained the Beast God Fruit. While I was gravely injured and unconscious, you had me captured and brought back..."

His voice grew colder with every word.

"All so you could take the fruit I nearly died for... and give it to your precious younger son, Aris."

"Aris is your younger brother."

Melanie frowned, displeased by the way he looked at her.

"Aren, don’t forget. Because of you, your brother has lived in your shadow since childhood. He has suffered enough. As his older brother, it is only right that you make it up to him."

Aren let out a low, humorless laugh.

"Suffered? Make it up to him?"

His voice dripped with scorn.

"Do you have any other words in your vocabulary?"

He had heard this excuse his entire life.

To outsiders, he was the young master of the succubus clan, raised with the finest resources and privileges.

But no one knew that most of what was given to him had been taken by his own mother and handed to Aris.

Because in her eyes, Aren had stolen everything that should have belonged to his younger brother.

And so, for that imagined debt, he was expected to spend his entire life repaying it.

"The Beast God Fruit..."

Aren’s gaze turned icy, his voice steady despite the weakness in his body.

"Even if I die, I will never give it to you. Give up on that idea."

Any last trace of hope he had once held for Melanie had long since withered away.

Otherwise, he would not have abandoned his position as heir to the succubus clan and exiled himself beyond the borders, scavenging a life among the stars.

Melanie’s expression darkened instantly.

"You are utterly stubborn," she snapped. "Don’t tell me you still intend to give that fruit to that female named Rory?"

Her voice sharpened, rising with anger.

"You really think that woman cares for you that much? I’ve already had someone investigate her thoroughly."

She looked down at him, her eyes full of contempt.

"That Rory isn’t sick at all. She has already borne a child for the First Commander, Yuel, and has even taken Paros, the ruler of three domains, as another mate."

"Aren, her illness was nothing but a lie. A trick to make you willingly risk your life on Beast God Mountain. You’ve been deceived."

Her lips curled. "You fool."

Melanie had expected shock. Rage. Despair. Even collapse.

Instead, Aren smiled.

His cracked lips lifted slowly, faint but genuine.

So... Rory wasn’t sick after all.

That was... good.

As for being deceived?

He let out a quiet, breathless laugh.